Karnataka Lokayukta Seizes ₹1.70 Crore in Raids Linked to Senior Engineer H.M. Janardhana

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On Thursday, February 12, 2026, the Karnataka Lokayukta Police seized around ₹1.70 crore in unaccounted cash during raids linked to a disproportionate assets case involving a senior government engineer in Bengaluru. The money was recovered from the flat of Sujay Shetty, a close associate of H.M. Janardhana, a Superintending Engineer with the Karnataka Residential Educational Institutions Society (KREIS).

The case was registered by the Bengaluru Rural Lokayukta Police after receiving inputs that Janardhana had accumulated assets beyond his known sources of income. Following this, simultaneous raids were carried out at six locations connected to him. An official said that cash worth ₹1.70 crore was found at Shetty’s residence. Videos from the searches showed bundles of currency notes spread on a bed, with officials using counting machines.

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Investigators found that Janardhana owned a plot, three houses, agricultural land valued at over ₹60 lakh, along with gold and silver ornaments and other valuables. Documents seized during the operation revealed that his total property holdings were worth about ₹3.2 crore, including residential properties valued at ₹2.4 crore.

An official stated "The investigation has revealed assets totalling Rs 4.42 crore, which is 216% more than the known sources of income of the superintending engineer."

The Lokayukta said the search and seizure process is still in progress and that more details will emerge as the investigation continues. Earlier, anti-corruption teams conducted coordinated raids at 29 locations linked to four government officials across Karnataka. Properties in Bengaluru, Davangere, and Dharwad were searched as part of the operation.

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Apart from Janardhana, those under scrutiny include Arjun R.H., Assistant Executive Engineer (Civil) with BESCOM in Davangere; Purushotham Das Hegde, Executive Engineer in the Public Works Department and Project Director of the Karnataka State Highway Development Project; and Somalingappa Fakkirappa Siddanagoudar, Survey Supervisor in the Assistant Director of Land Records office in Dharwad. According to officials, assets worth ₹23.76 crore were uncovered during the raids.

TOI Reports said that Arjun R.H. possessed assets worth nearly ₹2.2 crore, while Somalingappa Siddanagoudar owned property and valuables valued at about ₹1.8 crore. Searches at their residences led to the seizure of cash, gold, silver, houses, plots, vehicles, agricultural land, and other assets.

The Lokayukta stated that the raids were carried out based on specific intelligence inputs and were aimed at exposing illegally acquired wealth. Officials confirmed that the probe is ongoing and that further information will be released in due course.

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